I have now been blogging for 8 whole months…yay! It has gone by considerably fast and I have enjoyed every minute of it so far. It feels like I have been doing it for much longer than I have been and I want to thank anyone who has been following my journey.

Although I am no expert and I still have a long way to go before my blog is at the level I want it to be at, I have learned some things along the way that I wish someone had told me when I first started out.

I wanted to share some of my tips and advice with any new bloggers out there who aren’t quite sure where to start so here it goes…

Where to begin

So you’ve decided that you are going to venture into the world of blogging but what are you going to blog about? The answer is anything you want it to be. If your passion is food, fitness or even collecting stones, don’t think you need to blog about a popular topic. There are billions of people out there who might love the same things you do and what enjoyment will you get if you aren’t blogging about the things that you feel passionate about?

Giving your blog a name

This is the toughest part of starting a blog. You want to come up with a name that is both catchy and relevant to your blog. Write down some words that reflect the image and subject that your blog. Have a think around some of your likes and dislikes then team these up with your selection of words. It might take you a couple of hours or a couple of weeks but rome wasn’t built in a day.

Choosing a platform

This part can be very confusing for first time bloggers, especially if you don’t know much about blogging platforms. A platform is a site where you can create your website and post your content from. I currently use wordpress and have never used any other platform. I highly recommend using wordpress as it is very simple to use. You will be given the option to choose from a free account with website templates or you can pay to upgrade and have access to some cooler features. If this is your first time blogging and you don’t have a huge following yet, I would avoid paying the extra money until you know for sure that your blog is something you want to pursue on a full time basis.

Choosing a domain

If there is any investment i would advise in the early stages, it is buying your own domain. This is the difference between having a website called yourblogname.wordpress.com or yourblogname.com. Which one looks more professional? Definitely the second one. I purchased mine from godaddy.com and I paid £1 for the entire year. Godaddy.com is one of the cheapest domain providers and they are available for any technical difficulties that might arise, however I have never had any issues.

Post regular content

Posting once a month isn’t going to cut it. People will forget about you very quickly and who wants to wait for their favourite blogger to post once a month? I would recommend posting engaging content atleast twice a week. Regular content will ensure the constant flow of traffic to your blog, meanwhile your viewers/followers will see that you’re taking it seriously.

Take lots of interesting pictures

While the content part of your blog is important, pictures also make it just as intriguing. Include pictures of yourself as it is good for other people to know the person behind the blog. You will read posts on how you should invest in an expensive camera for your blog but to be honest, a mobile phone will do just fine for when you are starting out. Professional cameras can be costly and it can be a lot of wasted money if you decide to change your mind about blogging. Use a simple phone camera and use an app called pixlr to edit your pictures so they look more professional.

Social Media

Create social media pages which include your blog url in your description. Use anything from twitter, pinterest, instagram and link your accounts to your blog. In order for people to know about your blog, you need to be talking and posting about it on as many social media platforms as possible.

Your first blog post

I really struggled with my first blog post. I had no idea what to talk about as no one knew me and had never read my blog before. You can choose to dive straight in to your first topic or you can introduce yourself and tell people about yourself. There is no right or wrong answer. Just make sure your first post is relevant to the route you would like your blog to take.

Don’t get caught up with numbers

The honest truth about starting a blog is that your views and followers aren’t going to sky rocket straight away. It’s a lengthy process and will require some patience. I don’t have a huge following yet and that’s fine because it is coming slowly but surely. Don’t compare yourself to other bloggers. Everyone is at different stages of their blogging career but as long as you are writing about the things that you love, the passion will come across in your blogs and the views/subscribers will follow.

Thank You for reading my latest blog post. If you’re a blogger yourself and would like to add furthers tips or advice then please comment below.